Watching Steelers, 49ers, Chargers, Giants and Packers with the sound turned off

For My Fellow Football Geeks

By James Turnage:

Sunday’s games produced some interesting results.

The Pittsburgh Steelers cannot win without “Big Ben” in the lineup. The offense found a way to lose, give the ball to the other team as frequently as possible. That was the only way a bad team could win.

The San Francisco 49ers have found in Colin Kaepernick what Coach Alt discovered her in Reno. He is a quarterback who plays beyond his years and just might lead them to a Superbowl.

The San Diego Chargers are, excuse me, were, the most overrated team in football. I will be surprised if both Norv Turner and Phillip Rivers are anywhere on the field next year. They may be in the stadium, but they’ll be yelling “hot dogs, hot dogs here”.

Last, and probably the least surprising, was the dominance of the New York Giants over the Green Bay Packers.

On the FOX pre-game show, Terry, Howie, Michael, and coach Jimmy Johnson all anointed Aaron Rodgers once again. He is an excellent quarterback, but far from one of the greatest of all time. His opposition was Eli Manning who moved his offense down the field effectively and produced a win, that was his job. (By the way, Eli has two Superbowl rings.)

Rodgers attained fame when the Packers beat the Steelers in a Superbowl. What true fans remember is that if Pittsburgh had not committed two critical penalties, and two devastating turnovers, Green Bay would have lost that game.

Announcers, mostly former players or coaches, are paid a lot of money to voice their opinions on national television. They are usually wrong. That’s why I watch the games with the sound turned off.